Ikea hack – from dark to Farmhouse fab

We’ve had this black Ikea cabinet for a loooooong time, so long in fact that I don’t even remember what it’s called, I’ve looked online and I can’t seem to find an image of it… if you happen to know the name of this cabinet, I’d love it if you shared it with me.

Please forgive this awful photo… my intention as I said was to find an image online to show you what it looked like brand new, what ended up happening was… I dug around in my bajillion photos (can you say photo hoarder) to find something, anything! So this is it.

*Note to self, take better and more, before photos for the next project, lesson learned.

The reason I wanted to show you this cabinet new is because it’s changed a lot through out the years. There were sliding glass doors in the upper portion, I removed those… the glass and the black didn’t really  bode well for seeing the pretty things inside and even lighting inside the cabinet wasn’t successful, not the way I thought it should be, so… the glass doors came off, I used those in another project and you can have a peek at that HERE.  I also removed the backing in the upper portion and added barn boards, it was very nice but still dark, dark, dark. It seemed to suck all of the light out of our kitchen and it was driving me mad. I’ve used this little Ikea cabinet for wine glasses and decanters… and I’ve used it to display my Nanny’s wedding dishes, you name it this little cabinet has been a real work horse for us and it’s held many cherished things over the years, it’s even been our microwave stand for the longest time… ugh! Not it’s finest moment.

More horrific photos… I think you get the idea, the before was very BAD!

This black cabinet became the focal point in my large kitchen… it sucked all of the natural light out of a very bright room… this functional cabinet that held our microwave became U.G.L.Y. to me and just before I decided to paint it I was going to throw it out! Yep, it became a pain in the butt, I just wanted it gone.

When I decided to paint it I figured I had noting to loose, you see I’m not an expert furniture painter… so if I ruined it, no biggy, it was changing regardless of donation or paint. I am so glad I stepped out of my comfort zone and painted this cabinet!

This is how I changed this BLACK hole of a cabinet and turned it into a farmhouse fab, HA at least I think it’s FAB. 😉

Firstly, I found a recipe online for plaster/chalky paint… I modified it a bit to suit what I thought would work in my sprayer, it goes like this:

*There are many, many recipes out there… look around and use the one that suits you, I just happened to settle on this little mixture.

Secondly, I decided on a colour ~ I used Benjamin Moore, white dove – eggshell finish. This is my favourite white paint and I use it everywhere!

Thirdly, I decided to trim this cabinet up with crown and base trim, I went to my local Habitat ReStore and bought some crown molding and some baseboard, that was a grand total of $6, I know, I’m a big spender! I measured and cut the new to me trim to suit. Cutting this trim was made easy with our mitre saw, I’m very familiar with power tools… they are loud and a bit intimidating at first but if you use them safely, wear your eye and ear protection you’ll be just fine. Actually, a little thing that really helps me relax while using any saw is ear protection, I find it easier, it’s not so loud and screamy.

I also found this most brilliant tutorial online… this guy is the best and his tutorials are so easy and CLEAR! Best one I’ve found out there, this is how I tackled cutting my very first crown. I’m pretty happy with how it turned out.

Okay… so I’m one of those annoying bloggers that really gets into her projects and doesn’t take a blow by blow picture of how I did it all, I know, I’m sorry, I’ll try to be better. In a nut shell though this is what I did, I attached the crown and baseboard with, no more nails and my brad nailer. Then I caulked all of the seams… I mean I caulked everything, I can’t stress this enough, caulk any crack or gap you see. When you paint it will become a seamless piece and it will look so much better than having seams everywhere, trust me! I used latex paintable caulking to seal all the gaps.

Via

Once the caulking was dried I used a Wagner spray gun, and painted thin layers, leaving it to dry 24 hrs between coats, in total there are 2 coats and between each coat I lightly sanded the entire thing with a 220 grit sanding foam pad. The plaster paint is thin enough for a spray gun and it worked like a charm and the spray gun also cleaned up like a charm, and best thing? No brush marks!

This is one shot during drying time… I used lots of lighting, to make sure every little inch was covered. Once I was happy with the coverage I waxed it with Minwax finishing wax. I was a little concerned at first that this wax seems almost orange, but I tested it on a small area and it didn’t change the colour, or I should say it didn’t hurt the colour, it actually warmed it up a bit.

Now on to the fun part!

Do you see that little Downton Abbey bell beside the cabinet? That little bell was a very special gift from my Uncle for our 25th wedding anniversary, he knows me so very well. I love how it’s cocked to one side after you ring it.

I love this little guy, he’s too cute! I’m looking for just the thing to hang below my Downton bell, in the mean time though I’m kind of giddy with how this corner turned out.

I can’t wait to paint my next piece! There’s a tiny sneak peek in this post… and yep, it’s another Ikea hack! Why not reinvent and reuse what you already have? No reason, as far as I can see. Thanks for joining me on this painting adventure, I think I’m hooked!